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How much a candidate raises in an election season attracts a lot of attention, and the second-quarter fundraising numbers for the Oct. 8 Memphis elections are still trickling out.

The reports were due July 10 but some are still arriving at the Shelby County Election Commission website. And in some cases, the reports are incomplete, showing amounts raised but not amounts spend and on hand as of July 1.

Now that they’ve made the filing deadline for the Oct. 8 Memphis elections, candidates have until Thursday, July 23, to withdraw if they wish before the ballot is set later that day in the 15 city races.

Four years ago, Memphis City Council member redrew their own district lines just before elections that saw the largest return of incumbents in the 47-year history of the mayor-council form of government in Memphis.

The decision Tuesday, July 14, by a sixth Memphis City Council member to pass up a place on the Oct. 8 ballot has added some intrigue on the way to the noon Thursday, July 16, filing deadline for the Memphis elections.

Memphis City Council members approved a 120-day moratorium Tuesday, July 7, on new building permits in the Pinch District as they also approved a planned development Downtown.

The moratorium proposed by councilman Berlin Boyd allows the council to grant waivers on a case-by-case basis during the four-month period. During that time, the Memphis-Shelby County Office of Planning and Development will come up with suggested guidelines for future development of the district bordering The Pyramid.

Memphis City Council members approved a 120-day moratorium Tuesday, July 7, on new building permits in the Pinch District as they also approved a planned development Downtown.

The moratorium proposed by councilman Berlin Boyd allows the council to grant waivers on a case-by-case basis during the four-month period. During that time, the Memphis-Shelby County Office of Planning and Development will come up with suggested guidelines for future development of the district bordering The Pyramid.

When the city of Memphis voted to rename Forrest Park and two other Confederate-themed parks in Downtown Memphis two years ago, City Council member Bill Boyd criticized the move and extolled Nathan Bedford Forrest’s virtues.

For the last week, candidates in the October Memphis elections have had fundraising fever.

The campaign finance reports for the period that ended Tuesday, June 30, are due at the Shelby County Election Commission by July 10. That’s followed by the noon July 16 filing deadline for candidates in the races for Memphis Mayor, City Council and City Court Clerk.

A proposed 120-day moratorium on new building permits in the Pinch District was delayed at Tuesday’s special session of the Memphis City Council.

Council member Berlin Boyd proposed the moratorium to consider some kind of larger development plan for the area east of The Pyramid. But Boyd delayed a council vote on the matter until the group’s July 7 meeting and committee sessions.

Ending months of speculation, Cummins Inc. will remain – and expand – in Memphis, according to state and company officials.

Cummins and the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development said the company would invest $6.7 million to expand its current parts and distribution center in Memphis, creating 70 new jobs in the process.

Blues legend B.B. King died late Thursday at his Las Vegas home. Here are some comments from people who knew and admired him:

"The blues has lost its king, and America has lost a legend. B.B. King was born a sharecropper's son in Mississippi, came of age in Memphis, Tennessee, and became the ambassador who brought his all-American music to his country and the world. No one worked harder than B.B. No one inspired more up-and-coming artists. No one did more to spread the gospel of the blues. He gets stuck in your head, he gets you moving, he gets you doing the things you probably shouldn't do – but will always be glad you did." – President Barack Obama

The words of “We Shall Overcome” and “Wade in the Water” resonate through the halls as Insure Tennessee supporters descend on the Legislative Plaza for a key vote on the plan to provide coverage to 280,000 working Tennesseans.

Memphis City Council chairman Myron Lowery and council member Berlin Boyd are urging Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. to “compromise” on the current layout of Riverside Drive between Beale Street and Georgia Avenue.

The owners of Southbrook Mall got $1.5 million in improvements from City Hall this week. But it wasn’t the $1.5 million the owners of the Whitehaven mall wanted in 2012, when the city contemplated giving them that sum to fix the roof and make repairs to the mall’s heating and air conditioning system.

A leading global automotive supplier plans to build a new facility in McMinn County that’s expected to create as many as 400 new jobs.

Gov. Bill Haslam and Economic and Community Development Commissioner Randy Boyd announced this week that DENSO Manufacturing will build the new 224,000-square-foot facility at its existing location in Athens.

It’s back to mediation Thursday, Jan. 8, in the six-year long schools funding deadlock between the city of Memphis and Shelby County Schools.

That was the next step several Memphis City Council members pointed to after more than an hour behind closed doors at City Hall Tuesday with their attorney as well as city Chief Administrative Officer George Little.

Memphis City Council members Tuesday, Sept. 2, reconsidered their rejection at the Aug. 19 council meeting of an $8.8 million contract between Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division and Davis H. Elliott Construction Co. of Lexington, Ky. The contract is for three years’ worth of work to be done to meet federal utility reliability standards.

City government’s open enrollment period for health insurance begins in October and new details of health insurance benefit cuts approved in June go in the mail later this month. Yet Memphis City Council members meet in a special committee session next week to again review conflicting numbers from actuaries on the coverage.

The Memphis Bar Association poll of attorneys on the judicial races on the Aug. 7 ballot shows 16 percent to as high as 38 percent of the attorneys participating have no opinion in many of the judicial races.

If the city is going to spend money on a renovation of the Southbrook Mall in Whitehaven, it should be part of a larger plan for Whitehaven and tie in to the aerotropolis concept.

That’s what city Housing and Community Development Director Robert Lipscomb said Tuesday, April 15, as he outlined a $6.5 million plan for turning the mall into a “town center” that includes some city government offices and private retail.

Memphis City Council members approved an urban renewal plan Tuesday, March 4, for the Raleigh Springs Mall that will start the process of locating city government offices at the mall, starting with the Memphis Police Department traffic precinct. The resolution, sponsored by council member Bill Morrison and approved without debate, also sets the stage for a public hearing on the larger plan.

Memphis City Council members approved an urban renewal plan Tuesday, March 4, for the Raleigh Springs Mall that will start the process of locating city government offices at the mall, starting with the Memphis Police Department traffic precinct. The resolution, sponsored by council member Bill Morrison and approved without debate, also sets the stage for a public hearing on the larger plan.

Memphis City Council members cleared much of their committee calendar Tuesday, Feb. 4, to talk for four hours about specifics of the city’s pension fund liability crisis.

The discussion with Tennessee Comptroller Justin Wilson, Tennessee Treasurer David Lillard and consultants from four actuarial firms was aimed at trying to define the specifics of the problem, see if there is agreement on some of the numbers and better explain the differences.

Memphis City Council members cleared much of their committee calendar Tuesday, Feb. 4, to talk for four hours about specifics of the city’s pension fund liability crisis.

The discussion with Tennessee Comptroller Justin Wilson, Tennessee Treasurer David Lillard and consultants from four actuarial firms was aimed at trying to define the specifics of the problem, see if there is agreement on some of the numbers and better explain the differences.

One of the six Shelby County Commission incumbents seeking re-election this year was effectively elected to a new four-year term in a new district with the noon Thursday, Feb. 20, filing deadline for candidates in the May county primaries.

The Memphis City Council on Tuesday, Feb. 4, approved an anti-blight grant program for “tax dead” properties – properties with more in back taxes and associated fees than the property is appraised for or could ever be sold for.

With two weeks to the filing deadline for candidates in the May Shelby County primary elections and two months to the deadline for those in the August state and federal primaries and county nonpartisan elections, the fields have solidified enough that some political players are weighing their prospects for a late entry before the filing deadlines.

The Memphis City Council on Tuesday, Feb. 4, approved an anti-blight grant program for “tax dead” properties – properties with more in back taxes and associated fees than the property is appraised for or could ever be sold for.

Memphis City Council member got deeper Tuesday, Feb. 4, into the specifics of Memphis Police and Fire Department budget decisions.

But they didn’t get a clearer picture of what the direction forward will be as they and Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. prepare to make some hard decisions about public safety in dealing with the city’s unfunded pension liability.

The first two days of the period for candidates in the 2014 county elections to pull qualifying petitions has been dominated by incumbents and contenders for the newly configured district seats on the Shelby County Commission.

After years of talking about new parking meters and more aggressive enforcement of the Downtown and Medical Center on-street parking governed by the meters, city leaders thought it best to bring out the new meters as proof that the change is actually about to happen.

Three Memphis City Council members continue to look at the council’s rules of procedure and how those rules are enforced as the council prepares for the annual election of a new chairman for the new year.

A trio of Memphis City Council members weighing possible changes to the council’s way of conducting business has more questions at the outset than answers about what kind of conduct is allowed and what shouldn’t be on the elected body.

Memphis City Council members sent a plan Tuesday, Oct. 15, to settle the last barrier to direct day to day city control of the Beale Street entertainment district to a federal bankruptcy judge.

The council approved a resolution that would use $400,000 from a dormant city fund related to the abandoned Midtown interstate corridor and $100,000 in revenues it has collected from the Beale Street district to pay off a loan Beale Street developer John Elkington took out for improvements he made to Handy Park.

The Tennessee legislature has put a moratorium on annexations, and even if the moratorium wasn’t in place, the Memphis City Council hasn’t been anxious to annex any territory beyond South Cordova for several years.

Pilot Flying J is under a federal investigation into alleged rebate fraud. Lauren Christ, a spokeswoman for the truck-stop chain, said the sale of the Smokies wouldn't affect Haslam's ownership of the Browns and was unrelated to the investigation.

With the start of the new year, Memphis Police Director Toney Armstrong began a reorganization of the department that changed the boundaries of the city’s nine police precincts, evening out the amount of territory and calls each area handles.

The committee recommendations are in for new names for three Confederate-themed city parks. And the long-running controversy about the parks is now back to the Memphis City Council.

The ad hoc committee of nine, which included several historians and two City Council members, held its final meeting Monday, April 29, and voted with little discussion on several ideas for what used to be known as Confederate, Forrest and Jefferson Davis parks.

The nine-member ad hoc committee that is supposed to come up with recommendations for the Memphis City Council on what to call three Confederate-themed city parks displayed a clear rift Monday, April 22.

Memphis City Council members approved Tuesday, Feb. 19, plans for a tourism development zone to capture sales tax revenue in a large area for a renovation of the Fairgrounds property at first.

The boundaries of the zone go to the state for approval and city Community and Housing Development division director Robert Lipscomb said such a proposal could be at the state building commission in Nashville in April.

40 THINGS TO DO WITHOUT. Lent has begun – a season of reflection and sacrifice for believers seeking spiritual strength, a season bridging the gray gloom of winter and the green promise of spring for those seeking renewal, a season of waffles and chicken hash for those seeking comfort in the caloric basement of Calvary Church – 40 days of all of that for me.

As Shelby County suburban leaders were meeting in Nashville Tuesday, Feb. 5, with Tennessee legislators about possible moves toward some version of suburban school districts, the Memphis City Council was reacting to a pending bill in the state Legislature.

An award for elected and non-elected public officials marking its 10th anniversary this year began as a way to honor the late Probate Court Clerk Bobby Dunavant and to counter the damage done 10 years ago by the Tennessee Waltz federal public corruption investigation.

The Memphis City Council delayed to its first meeting in February a committee discussion about a proposal by council member Myron Lowery to rename Nathan Bedford Forrest Park to include the name of Ida B. Wells, the anti-lynching crusader of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The Memphis City Council delayed to its first meeting in February a committee discussion about a proposal by council member Myron Lowery to rename Nathan Bedford Forrest Park to include the name of Ida B. Wells, the anti-lynching crusader of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

If the walls could talk in the log cabin on the campus of First Assembly Christian School in Cordova, they might tell stories of home life in 1836 or of the visiting missionaries who used to stay there.

At the end of a long night at City Hall with a relatively short agenda, Shelby County Commissioner Sidney Chism told Memphis City Council members that their meetings looked like more “fun” than the commission’s meetings.

When the Memphis City Council got to the real intent this week of the latest version of an anti-discrimination ordinance it has been debating off and on for two years, it wasn’t just a decision about including “sexual orientation” in the wording.

Shelby County voters start deciding Friday, July 13, general election countywide races for assessor of property, General Sessions Court clerk, district attorney general and a race for a Shelby County Commission seat. The ballot also includes seven races for district seats on the countywide school board.

The schools consolidation planning commission considered Thursday, April 19, but voted down a resolution that would have urged the Tennessee legislature not to pass the bill that would allow suburban towns and cities to hold referendums this year on forming municipal school districts.

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. took a $628.3 million city operating budget proposal Tuesday, April 17 to the Memphis City Council with a 47-cent property tax hike proposed to meet the city’s obligation to fund Memphis City Schools.

Memphis City Council members voted Tuesday, March 20, to reject a one-time, 18-cent property tax hike to mop up an estimated $13 million in red ink for the current fiscal year.

Instead the council voted to use $10 million from the city’s reserve fund and cut $3.2 million in the existing budget including money for a voluntary buyout program of some sanitation workers that the Wharton administration has yet to activate.

Editor’s Note: This is a Daily News series featuring past winners of the Bobby Dunavant Public Service Awards, which annually honor one elected and one non-elected government official. The 2012 awards will be presented Feb. 22.

And all 12 of the Memphis City Council members seeking re-election won new four year terms in the city election cycle, marking the largest return of incumbents to the 13-member council in the 43-year history of the mayor-council form of government.

Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell has picked his five choices for the schools consolidation planning commission: two higher education officials, a corporate attorney, an Episcopal priest heading BRIDGES USA and an elementary school principal.

Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell has picked his five choices for the schools consolidation planning commission: two higher-education officials, a corporate attorney, an Episcopal priest heading BRIDGES USA and an elementary school principal.

The Shelby County Democratic Party raised more than $2,000 with a straw poll in which party regulars paid $25 a ballot to show their preferences in races in the Oct. 6 city of Memphis elections with a separate ballot for the mayor’s race.

It’s the week between the filing deadline for the Oct. 6 Memphis elections and the deadline for any candidates who made the first deadline to get out of the race by Thursday, July 28, at noon – the withdrawal deadline.

Four incumbent Memphis City Council members and all three incumbent City Court Judges were effectively re-elected at the Thursday, July 21, noon deadline for candidates to file their qualifying petitions for the Oct. 6 Memphis ballot.

Mud Island has become a kind of safe harbor for candidates hoping to make it onto the Memphis City Council in the Oct. 6 city elections.

With Mud Island apparently still safely within council District 7, University of Memphis law school professor Lee A. Harris pulled his qualifying petition this week for the only council seat with no incumbent seeking re-election. He’s one of three citizens weighing the district race with Mud Island addresses.

A detailed examination of the proposed redistricting plan for the Memphis City Council by The Daily News shows six prospective council candidates would be drawn out of districts they are considering running in for the Oct. 6 elections.